Canada is exporting asbestos for roofing to indian slums - and poisoning millions of people

i just saw a doco on Australian tv about Canada - which has banned the use of asbestos in its own country due to exposure resulting in illness and death - exporting asbestos to india.

India is using it to build roofing for most of the houses of people who live in the slums. These people are now getting sick with terminal illnesses and are dying.

I think that the company/s that are exporting this asbestos/products to india in full knowledge of how dangerous it is - and the canadian govt, who are no doubt fully aware of the whole thing - should be brought to justice and face criminal proceedings for what will no doubt amount to mass genocide of india's poorer population due to asbestos poisoning....

i will try to find a link to the program 4 u

LINK

LINK 2

(as for the claims in the second article that this type of asbestos is safe - tell that to the people in the slums i saw on the documentary who have breathing problems and are dying....)

reply to post by rapunzel222



How asbestos works is breathing in high levels of the fibres that cause medical problems. And even then it takes many many years for the symptoms to develop. (even this has been a relatively small number in relation to the history and use of the substance)
We used asbestos here in the UK heavily until it was banned, And we still have many buildings containing this substance.

Back to india, you know sometimes in these places using a material like this could mean the difference in having a roof on your house or not, it is more dangerous for those working with it than those living underneath it..

To blame an entire nation (canada) for poisoning millions of people is a bit of an exaggeration and if anyone is to blame it is the Indian government for not banning it as it has been in many nations already..

reply to post by rapunzel222


Pretty crazy stuff right there.
Dumping yet more toxic chemicals into under developed countries.

" The scientific evidence does not provide us with an easy answer to the question of just how dangerous chrysotile - white asbestos - really is. Our belief, based on the best available scientific evidence, is that the risk is real, and we must act accordingly."

From the HSE website ^^^

There are several kinds of asbestos, some more dangerous than others. By "kinds" I mean their physical kind, not chemical.

The sheet-rock kind used in roofing is relativly benign. It only becomes a danger when it is drilled into without the proper equipment, or broken up. That means it is more dangerous to those working with it, and almost totally harmless to those living underneath it.

Or would you rather them go cold, and die of exposure (not all of India is scorching hot), simply because they couldn't afford the sheet metal roofing? Don't you think it should be THEIR choice? If India is fine with the use of asbestos, why are you trying to force your standards onto them?

You know what the difference between a 20 year shingle and a 40 year shingle is?
Asbestos. Asbestos is in more products than you would think. And guess where the US gets it from?

Wow... i cant believe Canada would do something like this, me being an Canadian as well, we always on the Eco friendly/Pacifist side.... i bet this is some greedy business #.

But, i feel bad for those people living in the slums, i mean they hardly get by, 1 step away from streets, i seen these places myself, houses made out of metal sheets as roof, there is always puddle of water during rain season(mosquitos etc), since the ground is just mud/dirt What is so sad is that these people just want to get by living, as long as they can have some food to eat at the end of the day. I remember when i stayed in india, a small part of the city, not in centre but along a side is slums, and its separated by big metal fences with 2 secuirity guards at the gates to keep the slum people away from the fancy condos and what not.

reply to post by rapunzel222


Canadians have rallied their governments to stop this export to India, it's a well known fact here so your report is not eye-opening. We have realized this for years.

Fact is, the government chooses to not regulate companies exporting this material. Blame corporations for sending this material to other countries to make a buck. Our government just doesn't oversee or regulate all affairs.

I got a good question, if the Indian's know this is not healthy why are they buying it? The people living there probably have little choice, but those building the houses do...

Originally posted by loves a conspiricy
reply to post by rapunzel222

 

Pretty crazy stuff right there.
Dumping yet more toxic chemicals into under developed countries.

" The scientific evidence does not provide us with an easy answer to the question of just how dangerous chrysotile - white asbestos - really is. Our belief, based on the best available scientific evidence, is that the risk is real, and we must act accordingly."

From the HSE website ^^^

Since when is India underdeveloped?

second.

reply to post by BMorris


Remember...these are slums dude. They wont be maintained....they will be fitted in any way they can, including using damaged tiles and drilling through them.

These will not be changed for many many years, they will be become brittle, lose fibres and eventually fall apart.
There is still a fairly significant risk.

reply to post by BMorris

Or would you rather them go cold, and die of exposure (not all of India is scorching hot), simply because they couldn't afford the sheet metal roofing? Don't you think it should be THEIR choice? If India is fine with the use of asbestos, why are you trying to force your standards onto them?

Maybe because it's a known carcinogen and is banned for that exact use here. They've spent millions, maybe billions, removing insulation and other materials from public buildings because of the danger.

How can our government, with a straight face, tell us it's unsafe for us to use, while shipping it away for others to use?

Chromium is perfectly safe until you ingest it, why don't we start coating everything with chromium?

Super old news. But really is shocks you?

Lol.

reply to post by EspyderMan


Since time began dude....

www.dnaindia.com...

www.preservearticles.com...

Do developed countries have places like this???




Washing yourself in, drinking, and putting the dead in the same river...nice



If they arent classed as underdeveloped i dont know who is?? lol

Really . . . you folks are shocked?

Really????????

The Canadian goverenment supports exporting asbestos to developing countries for the sake of some multinational's profits.

The United States goverenment supports dumping billions of gallons of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico for the sake of some multinational's profits.

The Japanese Government supports the release of radioactive waste into the atmosphere and into the Pacific Ocean for the sake of some multinational's profits.

The Brazilian Government supports the eradication of the rainforests for the sake of some multinational's profits.

The Indian and Pakistan goverenments support the use of child labour for the sake of some multinational's profits.

The Chinese government supports the use of force to supress democracy to keep their people enslaved in labour for the sake of some multinational's profits.

Varoius governments on the African continent support the brutalization of their people for the 'blood mineral' trade for the sake of some multinational's profits.

Almost every country on this stupid rotting little sphere in the universe support thievery from their people to provide 'bail outs' solely for the sake of some multinational's profits.

The fact that anyone thinks that there's a government or multinaitonal on this planet that actually gives a steaming pile of manure about the people they're supposed to represent is something that makes me actually laugh out loud. And it isn't one of those Oh many that was freaking funny laughs, rather . . . how absolutely pathetically stupid is THAT laughs.

Can't you folks see that it all trails back to who has the wherewithall to affect governments around the world to allow things to happen that serve those who have the wherewithall.

It is how our system was built and it is how it will remain until the self-destructive path this planet is on comes to fruition.

So let me get this straight, Canada is responsible for India's government using asbestos in slums? If you looked at it from a logical standpoint it is India's government causing this to happen, not Canada. If Canada didn't sell them the asbestos then someone else would.

Come on people, get real.

The crux of the problem is that asbestos, if handled properly is not a threat. In Canada it is still used considerably in a host of different products, but very tightly controlled and regulated, hence quite safe.

However, when shipped abroad we lose all control of the handling which can/will/has lead to mis handling that makes the same products very dangerous.

The Canadian gooberments stance is that it is not their responsibility to govern other nations on how they handle asbestos, which I agree with. That being said, it would be nice if my gooberment took a stand and just stopped producing it all together.

Homelessness in India

With a population of well over 1 billion people, India is the second most populous nation in the world. According to UN-HABITAT, India is home to 63% of all slum dwellers in South Asia. This amounts to 170 million people, 17% of the world’s slum dwellers. India's per capita income, although rising, rank's it 124th in the world. This low per capita income is one factor that marks the sharp divide between India's wealthiest and poorest citizens. Approximately 35 percent of India's 260 million people (a group almost equal to the entire population of the United States) still earns $1 or less a day. And according to the United Nations, 70 million people earn less than $2 a day. As India continues to grow in economic stature, there's much debate over the country's ability to tackle poverty and urban homelessness. A 2001 census reported that 78 million people across India were living without a home, many in overcrowded urban environments.

www.slumdogs.org...

******

Obviously, India is and has been in a poor state of affairs. The poverty, lack of food and heavy drug abuse haven't gone away. It's too bad that a safe, long term and cost effective solution can't be found. It seems daunting, but one room, one family, one meal at a time and, if the donors are persistent, their effectiveness will be noticeable. I agree that asbestos should be out of the picture. But it isn't. Unfortunately, their choice is between bad or worse.

Reply to post by rapunzel222

Double standards of the west comes out more and more. Charest is a reptilian. Carlins ghost is hovering above him "asbestos the brown people!".


Posted Via ATS Mobile: m.abovetopsecret.com

reply to post by dl2one


Please explain just how the west is causing India to use asbestos. India is a nuclear nation, do you really think they don't have enough money for good insulation?

As I said get real, the problem is India and its governments poor choices not western influence.

The Quebec companies are apparently coating the chrysolite asbestos sheets with some kind of a resin. The resin lasts for 10 or so years, so they say, before starting to break down. That's why they say it's safe - not because it is safe but because it's coated. Companies in India are involved with the money making aspect of this too. It's probably being used as roofing in slums because the Indian companies get it cheap because it is asbestos and nobody else wants it. The corporations of Quebec and India win while the people of Quebec and India lose - same old story.

www.ehow.com...